Frank Borman was an American United States Air Force (USAF) colonel, aeronautical engineer, NASA astronaut, test pilot, and businessman. In this write-up, we will discuss details of Frank Borman’s death and obituary.
Who is Frank Borman?
Born as Frank Frederick Borman, He was born on March 14, 1928, at 2162 West 11th Avenue in Gary, Indiana, United States of America, as the only child of Edwin Otto Borman, his father, and Marjorie Ann Borman, his mother. He attended Sam Hughes Elementary School in Tucson, where he played soccer and baseball.
He then went to Mansfeld Junior High School, where he tried out for the football team. He was not good enough, so he formed his own team with some local boys, sponsored by a local jewellery store. He earned some money with a newspaper route, delivering copies of the Arizona Daily Star.
After Mansfeld, Borman went on to Tucson High School, where he was an honour student. He played quarterback on the junior varsity team and then became the second-string quarterback on the varsity team.
The first-string quarterback broke his arm during the first game and was out for most of the season. Although every one of the four forward passes he attempted that year was incomplete, the team went on to win the state championship. He also started dating Susan Bugbee, a sophomore at his school.
After the United States entered World War II in 1941, his parents found work at a new Consolidated Vultee aircraft factory in Tucson. His first ride in an airplane was when he was five years old. He learned to fly at the age of 15, taking lessons with a female instructor, Bobbie Kroll, at Gilpin Field. When he obtained his student pilot certificate, he joined a local flying club.
Frank Borman’s Career Explored
In early 1969, Frank Borman became a special advisor to Eastern Air Lines. The following year, he completed Harvard Business School’s six-week Advanced Management Program. He joined Eastern Air Lines on July 1, 1970, and moved to Miami.
In December, he became its senior vice president for operations. On the evening of December 29, 1972, Borman received a phone call informing him that Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 had disappeared off the radar near Florida’s Everglades.
He took a helicopter, which was able to land in the darkness 150 yards (140 m) from the crash site, and waded waist-deep through the murky swamp, helping rescue crash victims and load survivors into rescue helicopters.
Borman was promoted to Executive Vice President-General Operations Manager and was elected to Eastern’s board of directors in July 1974. In May 1975, Borman was elected president and chief operating officer by the board. He was named chief executive officer of Eastern in December 1975 and became chairman of the board in December 1976.
After Borman became Eastern’s CEO, he saved the company $9 million annually in salaries by firing 81 middle managers and 31 vice presidents. He drove to work in a second-hand Chevrolet Camaro with an engine he rebuilt himself.
Frank Borman Death And Obituary Explored
Sadly, Frank Borman was confirmed dead on November 7, 2023, in Billings, a suburb of Montana, United States of America. His achievements are a true representation of how hard he worked throughout the years.
“Today we remember one of NASA’s best. Astronaut Frank Borman was a true American hero. Among his many accomplishments, he served as the commander of the Apollo 8 mission, humanity’s first mission around the Moon in 1968,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson Thursday in a statement.
“In addition to his critical role as commander of the Apollo 8 mission, he is a veteran of Gemini 7, spending 14 days in low-Earth orbit and conducting the first rendezvous in space, coming within a few feet of the Gemini 6 spacecraft,” Nelson said.
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